Raveled Icicles
by Hanzatsu-Hime
Summary: She came for him as she always did. He appraised her as he always had. This was their nightly routine as husband and wife, King and Queen of Kanbalar, even if it felt like something more to him, and nothing at all to her. (Gaius x OC)


The door to his study opened, and he knew that his time was running out. Whether he believed an hour had passed him by or not, his wife was always prompt when fetching him from his cave dwelling whenever the snowstorm of Kanbalar raged inside his mind. Her steps delicate, her presence designed to smooth, she made her way to her place at his side with a single leap onto the corner of his large oak-made desk. She slipped into her signature pose of crossed legs, straight posture and presented him with his usual timer.

The untangling of her fire-tinted braid.

Amongst her sunshine locks were the darker streaks of sunbeams along the strands above her eyes, and in the single braid she wrapped around the rest of her hair. It was most befitting for the beast tamer in an Aska-worshipping tribe to both don such colours in her signature mane, and to care for it so intensely. It was gracious - mate-like, his Prime Minister once called it - of her to quietly warn him of his bed time so as not to disturb his last minute battle strategies, wealth and resource distributions, and any other tasks that befell him as the King of his united Rieze Maxia.

As per usual, Gaius was no longer surprised when his mind drifted like snow on a vicious breeze when she would come to retrieve him for bed - a task she designated herself with - and it always seemed to wander to the brightness that was her. Amongst all of the worshippers of the Summon Spirit of Light, his betrothed seemed to embody Aska's intendment effortlessly, outshining the memories he had of her in their childhood, all those years ago in Xian Du. Both primed for battle, both raised without expectations though they could easily exceed any set before them, both dreaming about the world outside of the lives of the tribes.

Yes, it was that very nostalgia and the connectivity it made him feel that compelled him to choose her and only her as his bride to be when in need of uniting the tribes of the land with the rest of the world.

Now here she sat, doing something that seemed so simplistic in the eye of a beast tamer: doting on her mate to ensure he has cared for himself, or championing the causeas her own. Yet she did so with the grace of nobility as if she had been raised in high society, rather than the mountain range beyond the very city in which they had first encountered one another; the lines of her body in every motion she made, her pride worn similarly to his own for a place she'd barely begun to live in, the sheer brilliance of her green eyes that never seemed to dim. He knew he had been wise in picking the woman who sat with him every night without fail, even if he failed to see her at any other point throughout the day.

Much like how he had failed to even visit her once in all the years that had passed them by before he came to whisk her away to his tundra of a home.

Her mountains were not dressed in snow tops, unlike the ones around his city of Kanbalar. It was a perfect representation, Gaius truly believed, of how diverse they were as people to those who merely heard of his sudden marriage, and that was how he had intended the impression of the merger to be. It gave King Gaius the image shift he needed to co-ordinate with all that Erston Outway had learned in his time outside of his winter-ridden fortress. Unknowingly, her presence allowed his royal identity to match with who he was before forsaking his own tribe and saying goodbye to that name he had buried and left to freeze in the blizzard at Kanbalar's doorstep so very long ago.

Everything about this woman suited him so amicably; she was the perfect partner for his plans as a king and an eventual father.

Though that future, his latter intent for their coupling, was still a path he had yet to traverse, it was one that was on the forefront of both his and Rowen's minds. His time 'abroad' had taught him many things, and his most potent instructors were those who had allowed him to be their companion.

Especially the companions that had stayed for such a short while.

The story of Ludger and the little girl Elle had greatly inspired his trusted Prime Minister to impose upon him the necessity, the fulfillment only having a child could present. As a king, it meant he had an heir, someone who could be raised the way Rieze Maxia needed, to see if his blood and teachings carried with it what was needed to continue to raise Rieze Maxia. As a man, it gave him family he would not need to forsake in order to protect, a woman as a life-long companion and a child to father and mould with all that he had come to know and cherish in the world he now ruled.

It was with such overwhelming benefitting factors that Gaius gave into the older, wiser, man who, somewhere along his sixty-odd years of life, no longer had a family to provide him with the same fulfillment. It was because of such wisdom that was beyond himself even as a king that Rowen was the man who stood at the king's side.

Unless, in his study during the darkest hours of the night, a woman busied by a sun-kissed braid occupied that territory.

Slipping off of the desk, tendrils of orange mingling with her unmistakeable blonde hair as it grouped together and flew over one of her shoulders, his wife came to stand behind him. Even under the weight of his armour he managed to tense his shoulders - the quiet, intimate space gently brightened by candlelight only intensifying the intimacy to come - but it surely went unnoticed. Anticipating her contact was a fiercer assault on his being than the brisk winds upon his skin when he used to walk through his frozen city with next to nothing on for clothes, snacking on massive quantities of ice cream. But without fail, her hands would fall onto the very shoulder blades of his armour that hid his nerves so well.

And then, she would lean in and call to him as if he was too focused on his work to even recognize her presence in his space. As if he hadn't been bewitched by her from the moment she dared to enter this cave of his and had become numb to all matters of his life aside from his appreciation of her.

"Gaius," she whispered after leaning in close to his ear. For reasons he could not fathom, he would always jerk his head when she would think she was luring him for the first time every night, acting surprised by her interruptions of his work and studies.

"Skylar," returning the favour, he spoke her name smoothly, much like how he addressed any and all citizens who came to him for his aid in their daily strife. Yet, in actuality, if it weren't for her assistance to him, he would never get to savour the few hours of sleep he was blessed with every night, something that aided him in the challenge of caring for himself so that he may care for others.

When neither moved, Skylar lazily slid her hands down the front of his chest, crossing them over one another atop his waist. Strangely distant for a woman such as she - and he knew it too, even if what little he knew about the woman who stood behind him now in comparison to the child he left in the coliseum all those years ago - but his wife never imposed her touch upon him beyond the pose in which she held him. It felt much like he was wearing flimsy banners over his armour with how she draped herself.

Her deep inhale of breath didn't seem to bring her body any closer, even though she was resting on his back, "It's bed time, Your Highness."

There it was; he tensed again by her conflicting ways. She would come to fetch him very late at night even if it meant disturbing her own sleeping patterns, as if this was some responsibility she held now that she bore the title of queen. Regardless of everything, he could never doubt both her loyalty and proactivity towards Kanbalar, it's people, and it's king.

However, that was also the very thing about her that irked him beyond all else: she always referred to him as belonging to everyone in Rieze Maxia aside from her, his partner for life, his wife.

Not once had she ever spoken possessively of him; as a man who had no qualm in staking his righteous claim to the land he fought to own, to unify, to protect - the lives of the world he always sanctioned above his very own - he found it quite infuriating at the worst of times. She behaved like a doting wife when it so suited her. She was a queen in training that blissfully attended to the people and allowed them to both watch and teach her to grow. She was the epitome of what he required of the person who would always remain by his side.

However, she was never his wife, nor he her husband.

Her speech denied him the simple pleasure of hearing that the family Rowen and, subsequently Ludger, had tricked him into desiring also desired him. For Gaius, it was both freeing and enraging.

They were both greatly skilled in the art of composure, though; hiding any emotion aside from what was required was a speciality they shared and it allowed her to hide her motivations for her lack of ownership as his partner, just as well as he could act as though he had never noticed such a thing.

In times such as these, he felt as though she was more of a woman of frost than warmth, but that was simply another hidden facet of his mind.

"It is." Was all he needed to say before she removed herself and gently stepped away from him. He took advantage of the lack of her hold and seamlessly filed his work away before escaping his snowstorm to face the lightbringer, his elusive bride.

Another surprise that never seemed to wane was the sight of her with her hair down, even if she brought it forward just as she would whenever it was fastened. The red of her night gown mingled with the colours and made her appear scorching - ready to roast anyone who dared to approach - but it suited her in his eyes. Flippant with her affection she may be, but Skylar was not any easy woman to procure for his future.

Whether she be blistering with heat or more frigid than Kanbalar under the waxing moon's light, Skylar was a challenge he would always rise to, and he wouldn't dare to think that he would rather have her any other way.

"Gaius?" She beckoned him with question this time, and he knew it was due to his odd observation of her. Odd, in that she clearly was aware of him doing so this time.

Shaking his head, he instructed, "Come, we should head to our chamber." He then initiated their exit of his study, allowing her to precede him. After closing the door behind them, together the king and queen made their way to their quarters for the night. Walking side by side but not without a step in between, they moved with a combined aura of righteous confidence even though there wasn't another soul to demonstrate this for.

Instead, Gaius decided to demonstrate it for his wife as they had the time to converse during their stroll about the castle, "Is the fire stoked in our room?"

Skylar smiled a sliver and nodded, "Yes."

He nodded in return before searching for a second topic, understanding how she might not be able to carry on speaking from such a closed question. Trying again, he asked, "What are your plans for tomorrow?"

For a second, she couldn't hide the curiosity from seeping into her eyes, as if it was a wonder that he wished to know. "I assumed I would be meeting with the Prime Minister in the morning to learn more about the city and its customs." She answered.

"Rowen has a meeting just before noon."

Skylar looked forward as she replied simply with, "I see."

His bluntness had issued in the second round of silence, and immediately his mind raced to find a solution to repair the damage he had caused. He assessed, and quickly realized that it was her disappointment shining through when he had revealed Rowen's schedule as it had displeased her; she had been learning under the elder gentleman on and off again throughout her time in Castle Gaius, seeing as how the king was far too busy with his own matters to educate her. It was a fact he was painfully aware of - that, even with what little attention he could provide for her, he had, in some ways, tended to her less than he tended to the rest of his people - yet he had failed to find a permanent remedy to their predicament of a relationship.

Gaius also recognized that his own behaviour could have earned her icy wrath, even if he found it inexcusable for a wife to silence and remove herself, when opportunities such as the one they were currently presented with were the perfect moments for addressing any and all of her concerns.

He offered something else that might interest her, "Some of the royal guards will be partaking in their physical evaluations tomorrow at the same time. You are more than welcome to join the captain in assessing them." Given her combative experience, he felt quite confident in the offer.

Judging by how quickly her eyes returned to his, he knew he had been correct in assuming so. "If it's...not going to be too burdensome." So she said, but the excitement was impossible to ignore in her voice. A small victory it may be, but Gaius knew to cherish whatever accomplishments one may achieve, and then strive for ever greater ones.

After passing by the many large rouge pillars and walking the length of endless carpet, it seemed they finally reached their room. Just as before with his study door, he opened it and allowed her to enter before him. The warmth of the fire immediately greeted him and he sealed the room shut to savour its heat for himself, hoping that the flames might inspire his wife to show him the same sort of affection. Even as she wordlessly walked around the bed to her side where the sheets lay askew, Skylar moved with that finesse that he felt belonged to only her and wondered if he would ever have the chance to enjoy the splendor that was her entity the way a man enjoys a woman, so that they could create a family born from amicable trust and a strong foundation.

Such a thing clearly required much more than the foundation he had metaphorically built for Castle Gaius.

Gaius carefully unclipped his armour and took his time removing it from his body, placing it aside with care as if was his pelt - his mane - just as his wife paid meticulous attention to her hair, before moving towards his side of the bed. As much as he resisted sleep, he craved it desperately when it was within his grasps as it was then; he tore back the sheets - caring not for his undergarments acting as his sole nightly attire - and moved in next to his bride. She did not move from her position near the middle of the bed, as he had come to notice that she was closest to him during her slumber, when she tended to sleep on her left side, facing him.

He, on the other hand, had become so accustomed to sleeping in chairs from all of his meetings and studies late at night that he could no longer sleep in any position other than on his back. His large body occupied a great deal of the bed, he knew, but her curved form seemed to compliment him in such a way. He sighed to himself then; whenever he found fault with her, she always managed to do something that reminded him of why he chose her.

More than just his memories, beyond her natural show of finesse in her own diction of strength, Skylar was a woman made to be partnered with only the most unyielding of man, which was exactly what he needed in her as well. Even if she tested him in ways he had never been tested before, it was in such a tender moment as her curled up at his side that melted some of the snow he had not been willing to admit had piled around his own heart.

"The red in your night gown suits you." Was how King Gaius broke the stillness of the night upon his realization. His third attempt of conversation - whether she acknowledged him or not - was his most sincere effort in procuring some goodwill from her. He knew that that alone would satisfy him.

But her shifting intrigued him. Peeking his eyes open, he watched her rise onto her elbows and stare down at him. "You think so?" She whispered, testing to see if his question was rhetorical or not, if she had shattered the glass - or ice - floor that they tended to stand upon with one another.

For a moment, he truly had no idea on how to elaborate upon the compliment he had made. It must have shown in his expression as hers darkened with a tight sadness around her brow. He no longer feared openness but rather her closing her heart to him again; acting quickly but with a touch of a delicacy of his own, Gaius lifted a hand to touch one of those orange strands that she used to time his return to her, to their bed, to the one place that gave him his chance to appreciate her openly, instead of secretly in her treks into his snow-ridden cavern in the cold, dark depths of the night.

He studied it carefully before looking into those green eyes that managed to enthrall him even when she continued to look to be in such a state of despair. Without breaking her gaze did he summon his courage and say, "It compliments the colours of your hair."

Skylar then blinked away her unease and showed him a calm, startled expression. So earnest was it, that he knew he never would have had the chance to witness such a thing had he not willed himself to speak with her tonight. "Oh," she murmured before looking down at herself to undoubtedly discover if she felt the same. Gaius kept his gaze straight, so that her eyes would find him when they returned, to see that he had waited intently to hear her take on his meager words.

"I suppose it does," she agreed and looked up again, meeting the vibrant violet of his own irises. His air impressed upon her that he intended to converse with her for as long as they could manage to do so, and Skylar kindly appeased him, "It feels much like I am wearing the colour of your castle."

Somewhere inside he was urged to remind her it was now both theirs to possess, but he refrained from potentially ruining the peaceable moment they had happened upon. Instead, he toyed with the strand he held and nodded. "Like a vibrant flame in an otherwise snowy kingdom." He elucidated.

"Which is a perfect description of you," Skykar smiled so sweetly as she spoke, "for when you became Gaius, don't you think?"

She spoke so candidly, it was as if she hadn't just mentioned the point in their lives where they had separated. By his doing, no less. It was indeed Gaius' turn for his brows to scrunch with displeasure; after he had shown such decency in restraining himself tonight, she was daring to converse more deeply than any other conversation they had had before?

Cautiously, he interrogated her, "How so?"

"Well," huffed his wife, shifting to sit more comfortable without imposing on his hold of her 'sunbeam strands', "the world was frozen in its ways, wasn't it? You were inspired to change things in a world that refused to change, and then you moved people to follow you in something no one else had ever done before."

Gaius was bewildered even if it did not show; had she just referred to him as a light bringer, as he had just thought of her mere minutes ago? He had already likened their similarities, but to hear her speak of them - even if it was only through a dictation of a past he was quite familiar with, summarized so ordinarily compared to the struggles he had faced - again found a way to soften with her.

It was then he decided to put aside his social etiquette, his decency towards her, and speak his mind exactly as she had done with him. If she could look him in the eye and appear so serene, then he could very well do the same.

"I managed to have you follow me here, as well."

For a moment, the flickering of the flames in their fireplace grew louder to compensate for the shift into potentially icy waters. Her face did not shift for him this time, no telltale expression for him to examine either. The king of all of Rieze Maxia could only lay in wait of what his queen might say in retaliation, should she find his off-handed remark so disturbing.

But as he wondered what she might say, she moved instead; he felt the blanket draped over his torso rise up to find his shoulders, elegantly firm hands managing to tuck him in without making him feel stifled. "Yes, Your Highness," she spoke ever so softly as she then shifted herself into her typical sleeping pose, making herself sound tired suddenly as she added, "you surely did."

And off she went to sleep.

Though he wished he could slumber just as she, Gaius waited until he heard her breathing even out before turning his eyes away from the troublesome woman and up onto the ceiling. Another deep inhalation, and, after tonight, he officially concluded that he was hopelessly a victim to the woman at his side; whether she angered him in the depths of his heart or managed to fascinate him as a person more so than any being he had ever met before, she _was_ his Skylar, his queen, his challenge.

One of his rare smiles befell his face just as he closed his eyes to say goodbye to this treacherous squall of a night. Even if he had whited out in the end - making her the victor, for she had him in bed, taking his minimal hours of sleep, all while keeping her distance as she dreamt away at his side - he still couldn't imagine a greater tempest of a temptress that was his bride.

If only he could find a way to show her such a thing.


End file.
